Nu Goth Fashion Aesthetic: 101 Guide

What is Nu Goth?

For starters, Nu goth is a subculture that emerged in the early 2000s as a reaction to the mainstream goth scene.

Nu goths are typically younger and more fashion-conscious than traditional goths, and they are often involved in the underground music scene.

The nu goth fashion is a mix of gothic, punk, and hip-hop influences, and nu-goths typically dress in a more outrageous and eclectic style than traditional goths.

It is about picking and choosing, mixing and mashing, and molding things to fit your flavor, so don’t hesitate to make something your own!

Where to buy nu goth clothes

We want to let you know that we are currently offering a wide range of nu goth clothing and accessories in our store.

We also ship worldwide! So, if you are interested in any of these items, please feel free to check out our website and see what we have to offer.

A brief history into Nu Goth aesthetic pop culture origins.

The gothic aesthetic takes its roots in the 70s within the Punk movement. Musical artists like Robert Smith from The Cure, Siouxie, Bahaus & The Banshees among others influenced that style.

Joy Division also made a strong influence within this subculture. But also Nine Inch Nails helped to popularize this genre in the 90s with its catchy Industrial rock music style.

Within the movies and TV shows, we can see its influence in the old television show “The Addams Family” with their unique graveyard look in dress, along its respective remake in the movies with Christina Ricci as Wednesday Addams.

Added to that was the popularity of “Beetlejuice” & “Edward Scissorhands”, created by Tim Burton, who really pushed the Gothic aesthetic into the mainstream and made it chic.

More recently, within the mainstream goth pop culture, we can see the character Lisbeth Salander based on the novel “The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo”, a Swedish one & the US remake by David Fincher. Both exhibiting a new Gothic millennial style.

Now that we’ve covered the origins of this aesthetic, we’ll show you 21 fashion tips to rock Nu Goth in style!

Nu goth fashion essential items:

1. The Black Tee

This item is an absolute staple in any gothic’s wardrobe, and is a house favorite due to its versatility and flexibility. You can leave them plain, or add your own artworks, and don’t be afraid to mess one up — plain, cheap black Tees are fine, so don’t go wasting money on them.

2. Get that body garter!

Garters are sexy! It’s perfect to show your body with style! There are garters not only for full body, but also as bras! I love the ones that have the pentagram star form!

3. Customizing tights.

The black tight acts as a blank canvass for your creativity — let your juices flow and produce whatever wacky ideas they can. Tiger scratch rips add a layer of pop to your outfit, and if you have the time or energy, etching patterns onto them can take your outfit to the next level.

4. Creepers & platforms shoes are a must in the Nu Goth aesthetic.

These shoes add new dimensions to your look, and can be worn with or without leg covering clothing, but do especially well with skirts and long socks.

5. Armbands and wristbands

A single banded wrist accessory will go well with a short-sleeved shirt, and a stringy wristband can add that feathery look to your outfit.

6. Get a Nu Goth makeup look with black ombre eyes!

The basic black is always going to be the go-to color and style, but if you ever get sick of this, adding in some other colors can add a new feature to your nu goth makeup look. Deep red is a growing favorite, but some Nu-Goths are going for dusty gray. The style you go for can also be changed up, and you can incorporate methods like sharp points and flares.

7. Add some Nu goth hair dye to your head.

Dying your hair jet black might get stale after a while, as not everyone is the same about this. Adding a bright color to your hair can be a constant feature that adds sparkle and brightness to any outfit. It can be especially contrasting if you’re wearing all black on black. Green, red, blue, and storm gray are all seriously excellent choices.

8. You can do some interesting things with your hairstyle.

Try some new hair tying techniques to make your look rounded off and complete. If you’re out of ideas, a few suggestions could be a double bun (sailor moon buns), a side fringe, or the frizzy piggy tails.
Alternatively, you can go all the way and get a new nu-do. Jet black bobs, front fringes, and even side shaves can add flare and edginess to your new look.

9. Knee high socks.

Black knee-high socks with a frill skirt is a classic Nu-Goth look. They go great with flat forms and boot heels.

10. Skeleton hair clips.

If you want a bit of noise added to your hair, skeleton hair clips are splendid if you also want to keep the Nu-Goth theme.

11. Throw in some plaid or flannel.

If you want something you can throw into your look without taking too much away from the goth factor, plaid, or flannel is perfect. Adding a bit of plaid to the tail end of your outfit adds something unique, and breaks up the blackness of Gothic nicely.

12. Cross designs.

Many Gothics rock cross designs of various kinds, almost every time they appear in public. For many, it’s a staple, but for others, it’s a nice addition to an outfit. Sew or stamp them onto clothes for a DIY effect, otherwise, cross design clothing certainly won’t be hard to find for purchase!

13. Dark lipstick is essential for a Nu Goth aesthetic makeup look.

Ah, yes, black lipstick, a timeless Gothic practice. This plays more to the dark side of your attire, and can really stand out if your hair or neck region is brightly colored.

14. Chokers necklaces.

Every few years it seems chokers get a buzz and then die out, well now is one of those times when it’s hot. If you’re showing off a lot of skin in your neck and chest region, and you feel as if that part of the canvass is to bear, a simple choker can remedy this entire issue.

15. Claw finger nails/stiletto nails.

Scary, frightening, dangerous, exciting. Stiletto nails bring the whole look to a raw, primal level.

16. Collared shirts.

Can be worn without sleeves, or with sleeves, this is especially good for those days when you want one piece of upper body clothing on, without feeling too stripped back. Of course, black is always essential, but you can find two-tone shirts with a white tail that look amazing with black stockings.

17. Show off your Nu Goth tattoos.

This subculture encourages tattoos (not really uncommon in this day and age, but still!), so show them’ off!

Wear things that accentuate your tattoos, that show them to the world, things that make your tats come out of their shell.
You can also check out these tattoo sleeves for women to get more inspiration.

18. Get your septum piercing done!

Ok, this may not be for everyone, but if you really want a piercing and everything feels played out, a septum ring is ideal (until it also gets played out, but whatever).

19. Nu Goth Style Must-Have: Pentagrams

Pentagrams are the epitome of goth derived culture. Having them on clothing definitely needs to be done, and black symbols on white pieces really make the pentagram seem even more vivid.

20. Black beanies.

If you’re having a lazy day with your hair, or your hair is experiencing an ‘unworkable’ spell, throw on a beanie.

Beanies are also good because they can cover large surface areas, and can be customized easily with prints and designs.

21. Anything with cats

Because who doesn’t love cats? >:3

Nu Goth’s Colorful Sister: Kawaii Goth

If you are looking for a more colorful style you can also check out the pastel goth aesthetic, also known as Kawaii Goth, with its mixture of casual Goth, grunge, hipster and more alternative styles.

This trend uses quite a few symbols including unicorns, triangles, pentacles, crosses, oversized crosses, upside down crosses and evil cats.

That’s pretty much it! If you dig this post, you can also check out these goth outfit ideas, they feature a lot of nu goth elements as shown on this article.

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